The fluidity of the lava has caused the affected area to spill and grow, which has increased in one day about 10%
The fire in a cement factory due to the invasion of the lava flow in La Palma forced the ordering of new confinements. The measure seeks to protect the health of some 3,000 people from the emissions of toxic gases stored at the plant. The confined population, which is located near an industrial estate in Callejón de la Gata, in Los Llanos de Aridane, will remain in their homes until it is verified that the air quality is good and those affected can lead a normal life.
The technical director of the Canary Islands Volcanic Emergency Plan (Pevolca), Miguel Ángel Morcuende, assured that in the last hours the lava has become quite fluid, which has caused it to increase in quantity and cause some overflows with respect to the main wash. . The dispersion has resulted in a growth of the affected area, which now amounts to 591 hectares, which is 65.33 more than the day before. “This is a remarkable increase, of more than 10%,” Morcuende reported.
The maximum width is still about 1,520 meters. The buildings affected by the volcano spill, according to the cadastre data, total 753, of which 620 are homes.
María José Blanco, director of the National Geographic Institute (IGN) in the Canary Islands, said that after the lava lake collapsed last Saturday after the partial collapse of the main cone, the tongues of fire have advanced on the northern part of the main stream, following a trajectory to the west, in the direction of the sea. The distance in relation to the ocean was only 300 meters in the afternoon. It is possible that a new lava delta or fajana will form in the area of Playa del Perdido, north of the platform that has been created with the contribution of volcanic material. Yesterday a large number of earthquakes continued to occur, although they originated very deep, more than 30 kilometers away. The largest of the tremors occurred in Mazo.
Regarding the areas, Morcuende said that there are 150 hectares affected by crops, of which 74.8 belong to banana trees, 45.16 to vineyards and 8.78 to avocado trees.
Blanco, on the other hand, has affirmed that the volcanic eruption continues normally, of a fissure and strombolian type, and with an explosiveness index of two -above eight-, and an original cone that is continuously changing morphology due to its own activity.
.